


Rose Garden Christmas

by lil_1337



Series: Rose Garden [21]
Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: F/M, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-12-24
Updated: 2006-12-24
Packaged: 2017-11-06 22:37:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/424027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lil_1337/pseuds/lil_1337
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This was written for the <span class="ljuser ljuser-name_lemon_advent"><a href="http://lemon-advent.livejournal.com/profile"><img/></a><a href="http://lemon-advent.livejournal.com/"><b>lemon_advent</b></a></span> community and posted over 24 days.  Each section is noted as what day it was posted for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Rose Garden Christmas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Merith](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Merith).



> A/N: Last year for Christmas I set out to write [](http://merith.livejournal.com/profile)[**merith**](http://merith.livejournal.com/) a drabble based on the song 'Rose Garden' by Lynn Anderson. By the time the thing was done it had turned into a rather long fic in twelve scenes that had grown from a slice of life into slices of a lifetime. Since then there have been additional side stories and it continues to be the fic that never ends. While its not necessary to have read the rest of the timeline it does help flesh things out.

Day 1

Quatre never celebrated Christmas as a child. He was raised Muslim so while he knew of the holiday it had no meaning for him on a personal level. It wasn't until after the first eve war at Duo's insistence that he attended his first Christmas celebration. He enjoyed the fellowship and the decorations, but in the end it was the music that pulled him in. When Trowa found him, sequestered in Duo's small bedroom with headphones on, listening enthralled to a choral arrangement of 'Angels We Have Heard On High', Quatre was already captured by the beauty of the sound. Feeling a bit at loose ends with the end of the war and the loss of his father the passion and force of belief behind the music drew Quatre to it, filling a void inside. He would never buy into a lot of what the holiday was about, but he was willing to borrow it as a time for fellowship and reflection.

 

Day 2

The first Christmas after Quatre and Trowa started dating Duo insisted on winking slyly and pointing out all the mistletoe he had hung around the house. It wasn't that Quatre didn't appreciate it, more that he and Trowa really didn't need it. They never required a reason to kiss or touch beyond that both of them enjoyed it. Not that they didn't take advantage of all the opportunities since it would have hurt Duo's feelings not to. That year Trowa took Quatre to see the Messiah preformed live, something that would become a yearly tradition. He and Trowa purchased a tree, which they set up in Quatre's living room and decorated under the watchful and somewhat amused eyes of their friends. Christmas still wasn't a major holiday for them as Trowa had never really observed it either, but they both freely admitted it was nice to have everyone together.

Day 3

Trowa and Quatre really hadn't expected much of a turnout for the Christmas party the year they got married. After all, so many of their friends had taken time off for the wedding which had only been a few months prior. That year they discovered that being an official couple meant most of their presents were addressed to both of them instead of one for each. They really didn't mind since being together and two parts of a whole was much better than just being two parts. Christmas Eve Trowa found Quatre standing on the porch looking up at the stars. Without a word, Trowa wrapped his arms around his husband, keeping Quatre warm as he silently sent his good will wishes out to the family they had made.

Day 4

Triton was barely five months old for his first Christmas. Looking at the stack of gifts under the tree for the infant, both Trowa and Quatre realized that they were going to have an uphill battle to keep their friends and family from spoiling the little boy. Wufei announced his decision to return to school and get his law degree. His ambition, or so he said, was to become a judge. Heero and Duo formally stated they were dating even though everyone was already aware and Lu let it be known she was pregnant. Lying in bed after the celebration while Trowa walked a colicky Triton, Quatre realized that Christmas had become like a bulletin board where they pinned announcements of their lives up for the others to see. That year as they listened to the Messiah, Trowa was not surprised to see Quatre tearing up during for 'unto us a child is born', but he was a bit bemused when he realized he was doing the same.

Day 5

His second Christmas, Triton discovered the joy of boxes. Presents were given a cursory glance, if even that while the packaging provided hours of entertainment. Uncle Wufei helped him build a fort and Uncle Duo pushed him around in a box, making engine noises. Once Triton was lying sleepily in Quatre's arms, Uncle Heero made him origami animals to play with. When Lu's daughter began to fuss and had to be walked to settle her, Trowa and Quatre exchanged a smile, remembering the year before, both happy that Triton was on solid food and sleeping through the night and yet a little nostalgic for the days when he had been not quite so mobile. It seemed like yesterday, and yet a lifetime ago, when they were in Zechs' shoes.

Day 6

When Triton was five, the annual Barton-Winner Christmas party was moved from their home to room #212 in the east wing of the Geneva hospital. Duo, who was supposed to be on bed rest after being shot on a mission, swore he was coming to the party if he had to leave the hospital without his doctor's permission. Heero threatened to cuff him to the bed, which resulted in a loud forceful argument. Since Quatre and Trowa were visiting at the time, the decision to relocate was a quick and easy one. With a little persuasion the usual visitation rules were relaxed so that Triton and Ryanna, Lu and Zechs' daughter, were able to attend. The shindig finally broke up when the kids, along with Uncle Duo, fell asleep while Wufei was regaling the group with stories about the pressures of sitting for his bar exam.

Day 7

Triton decided that there was no Santa Claus at the ripe old age of seven. Being an intelligent and precocious child he put the clues together and asked his parents some hard questions. Though they struggled with destroying the illusion neither one was willing to lie to him either. In the end they admitted to acting as Santa Claus, but explained the symbolism that the man in the red suit stood for. After some discussion Triton, who had always picked out toys to give to needy children, became more involved with the giving side of the holidays to help him to understand that Christmas was about more than just presents under the tree. Trowa and Quatre were gratified to watch their son's growing understanding of how fortunate he was and realization that he had a responsibility to those who did not have the same opportunities.

Day 8

The summer of Triton's tenth year he discovered model trains. Not surprisingly that the weeks before Christmas were full of trips to the hobby store to point out oh so subtly exactly what he would like to find under the tree. On Christmas Eve Uncle Wufei arrived on their doorstep, bringing with him the book that would be part of Christmas tradition from then on, 'Polar Express'. Wufei later told Trowa and Quatre he had stumbled across the book quite by accident earlier in the day. It had been shelved amongst the law texts that he had been studying and as soon as he'd spotted it he knew that he had to get it for his godson. Despite the fact that Triton was quickly moving past childhood into pre-teen, the book remained on his bookcase until he packed it with the rest of his belongings when he left home for good.

Day 9

At thirteen, Triton decided that Christmas and Christmas parties were for babies. He sulked, was sullen as hell, and basically badmouthed his parents the whole time. Nothing was good enough and there was no way in hell anyone as old as his fathers would ever be hip enough to know the right stuff to get him. His uncles and aunts took great exception to his attitude and general lack of respect, which they all made a point of expressing to him without pulling any punches. In the end, it was Rashid who got through to the angry young man by taking him aside and explaining that Quatre had been just as hostile and disrespectful at this age and by doing what he was, Triton was not rebelling and carving his own path but following directly in his father's footsteps.

Day 10

Christmas the year Triton was fifteen stands out as one of the best memories of his childhood. It was the year Uncle Duo and Uncle Heero gave him, with his parents' permission, a beater car to fix up. He spent a good part of the next year with his uncles scouring junkyards and working under the hood. For his sixteenth birthday Trowa and Quatre paid to have the car painted and the interior completely restored. When it was done the car was Triton's pride and joy. The morning of his sixteenth birthday he woke his fathers before dawn so they could be sure to get to the licensing department when it first opened. After dropping Trowa and Quatre off at home, the first place he drove as a fully licensed driver was to see Duo and Heero and show them him the small laminated card that symbolized yet another step towards independence.

Day 11

Triton spent Christmas Eve and Christmas day working at a homeless shelter when he was seventeen. Though he had completed the five hundred hours of community service that he had been sentenced to for driving recklessly, he had found that giving of himself helped ease the hollow ache in his chest created by the suicide of his best friend earlier in the year. Jeremy's death had started a rapid decline that ended with Triton rolling his car and facing his Uncle Wufei in court as a defendant. Though he was beginning to get his life back on track Triton tried to avoid the annual Christmas party, unable to face the people who had supported and loved him all his life. His uncles and aunts had the right to expect more from him than a totaled car and a criminal record. The anticipated anger and derision never materialized; instead he was met with warmth, understanding and compassion. For the second time he spent a good portion of the Christmas party with Heero and Duo discussing how to repair his car.

Day 12

For Quatre and Trowa it was a mixed blessing when Triton returned home for Christmas after his first year away at college. It was good to have their son home and yet they had gotten used to having the house to themselves again. Trowa had to remember to put sweats on over his boxers before going downstairs for breakfast and Quatre had to be reminded that bending his husband over the back of the couch wasn't a good idea since their son was likely to come home and find them in a very compromising position. Triton's aunts and uncles gave him no small amount of grief when he had to excuse himself in the middle of the party to make a vid phone call. Poor Laurie met the whole gang when they crowded around the monitor and insisted on introducing themselves to the somewhat bemused girl.

Day 13

Laurie's first in person exposure to her boyfriend's extended and somewhat eccentric family was Christmas when she somewhat hesitantly agreed to attend the annual party. The memory of how they taken over Triton's phone call the previous year was still clear in her mind. She was surprised to find that, despite the barrage of somewhat personal and rather intimate questions, she was welcomed warmly into the group. Finding an ally in Ryanna, who like her mother had no problems with telling her aunts, uncles, and parents to ease up on the interrogations. Later that evening when Laurie and her new friend sat on the porch having slipped away from the party, Ryanna told her a story about catching the whole lot drunk and playing in the fountain. It was almost a week before Laurie could look any of them in face without fighting the urge to giggle.

Day 14

Christmas the year after Triton and Laurie married, Ryanna brought her first boyfriend to the party. Remembering her kindness, Laurie went out of her way to return the favor in kind. Paying particular attention to running interference between Francis and Ryanna's younger brother, Sergi. At thirteen he took great joy in harassing his sister in anyway possible. Laurie was surprised when she found unexpected support from Relena who announced loudly and somewhat dryly that she was quite aware of how much trouble a meddlesome brother could be. It was the only time that Laurie could say without a doubt she saw Zechs blush.

Day 15

The announcement of Laurie's pregnancy caused quite a stir at the Christmas party and was accompanied by much slapping of Triton's back and hugs for Laurie. Duo took great pleasure in spending the whole night calling Trowa and Quatre grandpa because he said they needed to get used to it. It wasn't until Triton unwrapped one of the brightly wrapped presents under the Christmas tree addressed to baby Barton-Winner and pulled out a tiny t-shirt that said 'If Daddy says no, ask Grandpa' that he and Laurie realized just how much Quatre and Trowa intended to spoil this child.

Day 16

Rose's first Christmas was filled with pale pink items stamped, embroidered and by other means decorated with the words 'Baby's First Christmas'. At a little over two months, the infant herself seemed less than impressed with being passed around and cooed over and more interested in a bottle and a comfortable place to sleep. Sergi surprised everyone by not only having the magic touch with the fussy baby, but also finding that he, like his father, had a real affinity for children. He also discovered that holding Rose meant he was never out of Uncle Trowa's sight.

Day 17

At fourteen months, Rose discovered as her father had before her, that boxes were much more fun than the presents in them. Triton was embarrassed to learn that everything his daughter did reminded his parents of something similar he had done at that same age. This usually resulted in the scrapbooks and photos albums being brought out along with stories he would rather have not had shared. It wasn't too bad until the Christmas party when Trowa felt the need to share Triton's love of undressing himself and running around naked accompanied by pictures and similar memories shared by his Aunts and Uncles. Much to everyone's amusement, Laurie trumped them by telling about finding Quatre and Trowa naked and sated in the Jacuzzi one of the times they visited.

Day 18

Rose had her first heartbreak when she was three years old. Sergi brought his fiancée to the Christmas party so she could meet his family. He was still affectionate with the little girl, but she no longer had his undivided attention as before. When Quatre found Rose sulking in the music room, after seeing Sergi and Rachel kissing under the mistletoe, he pulled her into his lap and comforted her in the way only a grandparent can. Much later that evening, Trowa found them sitting together on the piano bench as Quatre helped her pick out the notes to her favorite song. He stood quietly in the doorway watching them for a while before reluctantly telling Quatre that it was time for Rose to go home.

Day 19

The second time the Barton-Winner Christmas party was held in a hospital was for a much happier reason that the first. Ryanna's son William was born six weeks premature and not allowed to go home for almost a month after his birth. Despite his worrisome start he was a healthy little boy. Much to everyone's amusement, Rose announced that /she/ was a Rose and that made William a thorn. Great Aunt Lu informed her very seriously, but with a twinkle in her eye, that males as thorns was the natural order of things. Great Aunt Relena seconded it and the group cracked up when all the guys agreed.

Day 20

It wasn't the set of perfectly balanced throwing knives that Rose got for Christmas the year she turned eight that worried Laurie as much as the way the little girl seemed much too comfortable with one in her hand. Her subsequent demonstration and Trowa's smugly proud smile told the rest of the story. After putting all four of the knives in a tight grouping right in the middle of a target that just happened to be hanging in the garage, Laurie decided she really didn't want to know all the things her father in law was teaching her daughter. Judging from the look on Quatre's face she suspected he was as unaware of Rose's new skills as she and Triton had been.

Day 21

Rose's tenth Christmas Trowa and Quatre decided, with her parent's permission, it was time for her to begin to learn some responsibility. To that end her gift that year was a tiny silver tabby kitten rescued from the local ASPCA. The animal elicited a squeal of pleasure that only a prepubescent girl is capable of. Immediately named Esteban after her favorite singer, the kitten became Rose's constant companion, even learning to walk on a leash with some training. Caring for /her baby/ was one of the things that would later influence Rose to become a veterinarian.

Day 22

Trowa and Quatre were highly amused when Rose arrived at their Christmas party the year she was twelve with bright red and green hair, and an attitude to match. Hugging his daughter in law and then his son, Quatre explained to them that this was a normal stage of development and would pass. Reminding Triton gently that he had gone through a similar period and come out all right on the other side. Trowa, on the other hand, took the opportunity to smirk just a little gleefully before offering his usual solution for the trials of parenthood. Time, patience and discipline for the child and of course parent sanity nights, which meant sending Rose to her grandparents for a few days.

Day 23

In keeping with tradition, Great Uncle Heero and Great Uncle Duo gave Rose an old beater car for Christmas the year she turned fifteen. Triton shook his head and squeezed Laurie's hand when she tried to object, remembering not only the good times surrounding working on his car, but also all the knowledge he acquired in the process. Some of it having more to do with his parents and life than cars and mechanics. Triton did pull his uncles aside later and made them promise not to have the 'be sure you use protection' talk with Rose.

Day 24

Some of Rose's favorite memories of her childhood would always be attending her grandparents' Christmas parties. Being surrounded by the people who had loved her unconditionally and thought she was wonderful just because she existed. Closing her eyes she could picture the large family room filled with laughing faces and feel the happiness and acceptance enveloping her in a protective cocoon. Granddad standing with his arm around Grandpoppa as they shared a private moment with Uncle Heero and Uncle Duo. Uncle Wufei questioning her about her studies and listening seriously to her arguments about why Dumas was better writer than Dickens and the fact that he never letting her get away with having an opinion that she could not support with solid facts. They might not be a conventional family, but they were there for each other, sharing their each other's happiness and misery. As far as she was concerned that was what a family was.


End file.
